Ageism and sexism are not separate forces. When combined, they produce powerful and persistent inequities that disproportionately impact older women around the world. That was the central theme at the UN High-Level Political Forum side event in New York, “The Intersectionality of Ageism and Sexism: Harnessing the Power of Older Women.”
Co-hosted by HelpAge Canada and International Longevity Centre Canada (ILC), the event featured global experts and advocates who explored how gendered ageism shapes poverty, access to justice, caregiving burdens, and even climate vulnerability.
H.E. Bob Rae, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Canada to the United Nations
Amal Abou Rafeh, Chief, Programme on Ageing at the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs
Margaret Gillis, President, ILC Canada and Co-President, ILC Global Alliance
Kahir Lalji MA, CPG, CEO, HelpAge Canada and VP, ILC Canada
Rosy Pereyra, President ILC Dominican Republic
Marta Hajek, CEO Elder Abuse Prevention Ontario
Cherian Mathews, CEO HelpAge International
Key takeaways:
➡️ Older women are excluded from policies, overlooked in data, and undervalued in both economic and social systems.
➡️ Older women play a significant role in sustaining families, communities, and economies through unpaid caregiving, volunteer work, and informal labour. Yet this work remains largely invisible in economic systems and national policy.
➡️ Disaggregated data (both sex and gender) is essential to uncover the realities of older women, particularly those in rural, low-income, or racialized communities.
➡️ Older women face higher rates of abuse, neglect, and climate-related vulnerability – yet are often absent from global equity and inclusion frameworks.
➡️ Civil society has a crucial role to play in amplifying the voices, rights, and leadership of older women in local, national, and global arenas.
➡️ Older people, and in particular older women, must be included and represented in all sustainable development goals.
Bottom line: Older women are not a burden – they are builders of families, communities and economies. That’s why there’s an urgent need to redesign systems to ensure dignity and justice for older people, especially a UN Convention on the Rights of Older Persons.
📺 Watch the full session here: https://lnkd.in/e7CnsfMv
